Safe public Wi-Fi with a VPN

Public Wi-Fi networks are the perfect targets for hackers – most lack even basic network security measures, and some may have actually been set up by cybercriminals in the first place. If you want to enjoy the convenience of free public Wi-Fi without putting yourself at risk, you need a VPN.

Hackers are always looking for an access point that will let them get at your private data, but a VPN will make it much harder for them to do this. If anyone were to try and snoop on your web traffic or sneak into your device, they would need to break through a layer of encryption. That’s why we always recommend a VPN for those who like to frequently use public Wi-Fi.

A VPN protects your online activity by redirecting your internet connection through a private internet server — your real IP address is hidden, and your activity is obscured. Anyone trying to spy on you won’t be able to see past the VPN’s encryption protocols. Even though you’re not using a secure Wi-Fi connection, the VPN will secure your connection everywhere, so you no longer need to worry so much about external protection.

It’s rare to find genuinely secure Wi-Fi networks outside of your home. An unsecured network offers hackers a great opportunity to target new victims. Public connections are often poorly protected and easily accessed by criminals.

Alternatively, bad actors can set up their own router and give it an innocuous name like “Free train Wi-fi”. As soon as a commuter unthinkingly connects to the network, their private data can be exposed.

What are hackers after when they take advantage of public, free Wi-Fi? Any and all your personal information. Here are just a few examples of the valuable data you could expose:

• Your email login.
• Your bank details.
• Your personal photos and videos.
• Your home address.

And here are just some of the things hackers can do to take advantage of public Wi-Fi:

• Evil Twin attack. It’s easy to rename routers to literally anything. Cybercriminals will create fake Wi-Fi networks to fool you into connecting. You’d probably connect to a public Wi-Fi called “Starbucks_Wifi_Free” in a heartbeat – without knowing that a hacker might be running it.
• Malware injection. An insecure connection may result in difficult-to-detect malware slipping into your computer. It can steal your bandwidth, damage your system, and provide hackers with a backdoor to all your personal files.
• Man-in-the-middle (MITM). The cybercriminal places their device between the connection with your device and the Wi-Fi spot. This discreetly allows them to monitor your activity and even control your traffic, potentially redirecting you to a site of theirs that will fool you into entering your credentials or banking details.
• Wi-Fi sniffing. More of a passive act rather than an active assault like MITM. With the use of basic and legal software, a hacker can monitor and log all data packets passing through a Wi-Fi network.

Enhancing public Wi-Fi with a VPN connection will render all of the above attacks useless. The encryption process effectively shields all your data from prying eyes. While the would-be hacker will be able to see that you are indeed connected to the internet through public Wi-Fi, they won’t be able to see the details of the traffic transmitted. For all these reasons and more, we strongly recommend using a VPN for Wi-Fi.

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Estimates say that 81% of Americans use public Wi-Fi hotspots regularly. However, only 1% of Americans enable a VPN to enhance their security while on public networks. The number of people using a VPN when connected to Wi-Fi is slightly higher in France (2%) and Germany (6%).

Almost half of Americans surveyed believe that public Wi-Fi is safe and doesn’t require additional precautions. This is a dangerous attitude and might cause users a lot of trouble in the long run. Automatic Wi-Fi protection doesn’t exist, it’s up to the user to take care of security. For those looking to protect themselves after hearing these alarming statistics, take note that some of the worst places you can use public Wi-Fi are big public coffee shops or restaurants, airports and hotels. The more people that have access to a public Wi-Fi hotspot, the higher the risk of danger.

Yes, a public Wi-Fi provider can potentially see your browsing history. It’s not a given because it depends on the router they are using. But modern Wi-Fi routers keep logs – what domains you visited and for how long. And if you browsed in a webpage without proper TLS/SSL encryption, they would also log the exact pages you read and the information you entered.

On mobile devices, it gets even more complicated. The Wi-Fi owner can see what pages you visit and which apps you used, and for how long.

While most public Wi-Fi hotspots won’t be sophisticated enough to block VPNs, some internet service providers can use an IP lookup tool to find the IP address associated with a VPN provider, then use a firewall to block that IP address. Luckily, NordVPN has thousands of servers to choose from, so the solution is just to pick a different server; it’s very unlikely that an ISP could block more than a few.

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The main way to prevent any hackers breaking into your devices and intruding your internet connection via a public network is to educate yourself. Once you’re aware of the security risks that face you, you’ll also be up-to-date with how to prevent them. Here are the things you need to remember:

• Disable automatic connections. If you regularly take advantage of every public Wi-Fi node you can find, you may inadvertently latch on to a network you weren’t planning to. An automatic Wi-Fi connection is a danger to your unprotected device.
• Don’t carelessly connect to any public Wi-Fi. If you’re using the public Wi-Fi network of a popular fast-food restaurant or coffee chain, ask the staff for the exact name you need to search for.
• Don’t log into any sensitive accounts. When tethered to public Wi-Fi, don’t use the connection to access any accounts that hold information of a sensitive nature. If any hacker is sniffing around that network, your details may have just been picked up.
• Turn off file sharing and check your firewall. Simple checks that often get missed. While file-sharing is helpful in your own network at home, having it turned as you’re connected to a public Wi-Fi network is a formula for bad news. Make sure your anti-malware software is also active.

PRO TIP: Get a VPN, because your data is valuable, and needs to be protected. With VPN security, you’ll be able to enjoy the convenience of public Wi-Fi without the risks. A VPN also hides your IP address by connecting you to a VPN server, rather than one owned by your ISP. This means your activity can’t be tracked by third parties. Some VPNs also offer a whole suite of security features, not just privacy protection.

With so many VPN service providers out there, it’s hard to make the correct choice. Here a few aspects to pay attention when choosing a VPN:

• Strong encryption. Make sure your VPN use the most up-to-date encryption standard and guarantees proper protection and secure connection;
• Tons of security features also help a lot especially if you operate in more high-risk areas. So make sure your VPN offers such services as obfuscated servers, concealing the fact that you use a VPN, or Kill Switch, which disconnects your from internet if you lose a VPN connection;
• Good customer support in case you encounter a problem;
• Also avoid obscure free VPNs as they usually don’t offer a reliable service. They most likely monetize their activities by collecting your data, passing it to third-parties or ad-targeting you, so in the end they do more bad than good. Moreover, they also can have quite limited functionality and experience data breaches;
• Ability to protect several devices. In this case you will be able to protect your mobile devices and laptops with a single account and even your other household members. Make sure you will be able to use a VPN service on your mobile as we carry these devices with us exposing them to various unsafe Wi-Fi spots. You can also use NordVPN’s Meshnet feature to access your devices remotely, while still benefiting from encryption.

So, the best choice would be to buy a subscription service – you know exactly what you’ll be getting for the money you pay. Here’s what you get with NordVPN:

• Trusted security. There’s a reason NordVPN won best VPN of 2019. As any NordVPN review will tell you, our product is dependable and effective.
• Strong encryption. Our servers are secured with an AES-256 cipher – the same kind of encryption that governments use for their own systems.
• Stronger encryption. If the promise of one of the highest forms of encryption isn’t enough for you, then you can choose to run your traffic through 2 different servers using Double Encryption.
• Widest coverage. NordVPN offers servers in countries around the world — more than any other premium VPN service.
• Easy setup. Once NordVPN is installed on your device, all you need to do is select a server. All it takes is a button press.
• Protection for up to 6 devices. NordVPN allows you to secure all your personal devices or share it amongst your loved ones. It’s also available on all major operating systems.
• Protection against malicious threats. NordVPN comes with a wealth of extra security features. For example, the Threat Protection feature will automatically stop you from entering blacklisted sites, stop autoplaying and invasive ads in their tracks, and even automatically delete some downloaded files that could harbour malware. You don’t even need to be connected to a VPN server to take advantage of these security details.